Introducing......."Sheikah" LAYLA!!! (Gabrielle's Big B-day Surprise!)

This is "Sheikah" LAYLA~



We know, totally ADORABLE! And she was Gabrielle's big birthday surprise (2 days early)! She is a great puppy that has brought both of the kids sooooo much happiness, we often wonder why we waited so long! Well, it was time and it has been so worth it. She is a 2 1/2 month old Spitz from an 8 pup litter, born right here in Doha, Qatar. The vet said two very wonderful things (aside from her being a very healthy puppy): 1. It is a very rambunctious breed, and 2. they are super smart; which to us translates to: very playful for OUR rambunctious kids, and, very trainable - to keep our home clean from pee pee and poo poo! Truthfully, the first two nights were the worst, and even they were not bad at all. We knew it would be like having a new baby at home with the potty training and her biting into everything! But, she has been great....We really have been lucky. She woke us up one time during those first 2 nights to go out to potty, but by the third night, she demonstrated more self control and waited until Rolando let her out before he was off to work. These days, by the time the kids and I wake up for school, she is good to go. We try to get in 2 walks a day, when the heat allows, but really, most of their exercise is indoors playing catch, or watching her trying to catch dragonflies in our back yard. At the end of some of her busy days, bathes are also interesting and somehow seem to exhaust all three of them together, not to mention Mom and Dad! ;)





















You can see from the pics that her and the kids get along beautifully. It is like they were made for one another. Did I mention that Gabrielle's been asking for a puppy since she could talk?! Well, here's proof that dreams really do come true. HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO OUR LITTLE CINCO DE MAYO GIRL!!! WE LOVE YOU VERY MUCH AND ARE PROUD OF YOU MORE THAN WE CAN SAY.....



















Here are the pictures of Gabrielle's actual B-day (5 de Mayo)! Nick and Mommy went to Sissy's school with Krispy Kreme doughnuts to help celebrate it with her class. Later, we celebrated with Daddy,who bought her a dozen roses, and our friend Todd who stunned her with another of her wishes, a Tomagochi. And, yes, Mommy baked her her birthday cake which was a total hit, served with ice cream!!! ;)

Thank you to all of her Tias, Tios, Cousins, Friends, Sister and Grandparents who called to express their love and extend their B-day wishes to her; as well as those who sent emails. You all helped make her day super special!!!

Easter Weekend - March 21st thru 23rd

Realizing that it's been over a month since the celebrated of the resurrection of our Lord, Jesus Christ, I must say that the pictures we took from the weekend's celebrations were just too cute not to share with you. You'll notice that Daddy is not included in any of the pictures. Well, that is because unfortnately he had been working a shut-down that continued through the entire weekend, including Easter Sunday. The kids and Mommy celebrated as best we could, though, by: opening the baskets the Easter Bunny brought for the kids, sharing Easter-goodie bags with the kids from our compound (some of which didn't celebrate Easter but were grateful either way), enjoying Easter brunch with friends at the Ramada hotel's restaurant (which was also celebrating Mother's Day for all of the Middle Eastern community), participating in an Easter egg hunt at a friend's villa (at which Gabrielle found one of the golden eggs that was filled with money - in addition to the money already included in her basket), midnight Mass for Gabrielle and Mommy at the new church (as Daddy and Nick stayed home asleep), swimming at Alfardan Garden I's compound pool, and a sighting of the proverbial "lamb" in the back of some local's pick up truck! Whew!!! You think the kids were tired at the end of it all? Just think of how Mommy felt!!!! LOL! Again - Enjoy the pics!

Internation Women's Day with the SSLG - March 21st

The Spanish Speaking Ladies group celebrated International Women's Day in true Latin style last month. Ladies and even children performed in front of a live audience, dances from their native countries such as Colombia, Mexico, Argentina, and Peru. My personal favorite was the Jarabe Tapatio from Mexico, which you are listening to. My brother-in-law back in the States is from Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico. He has performed this dance with my sister at several special events more times that I can remember. "Hola, Sergio!! Echate un grito. Nos vemos pronto!"






















Being a member of this group has brought my children and I an awareness of our culture and background that we hadn't really thought much about lately. In reference to race, we have always taught our children that people, regardless of color or where they are from, are people just like everyone else. As a matter of fact, it is custom/the norm here in Doha to be asked the question, "What country are you from?" which just points out the diversity of cultures which exists in this small town. It has been great exposure for our kids. And our children have been taught to simply reply, "I am a Mexican from the United States."












Moving on, the pictures above illustrate one of the most memorable dances of the entire event. With the location of this venue set right in the middle of the popular Hyatt Plaza mall, it was expected that there would be a larger audience than intended. What great exposure!! Well, that was so until the lady from Peru performed her dance, in her adorably cute native costume! Oh, did I mention it was SHORT! Let me tell you, all the mall goers in the area just seemed to stop right in their tracks. The one group that particularly caught my attention and whose picture I couldn't help myself from taking was that of a group of local ladies who appeared less than happy to see this type of "exposure." The looks on their faces were as if they were insulted that someone would do this, without regard to the local culture. I must admit that the full three minutes of her performance were a bit tense for some of us that had noticed these ladies. One of them even pulled out their camera phone and began taking pictures of her. I wondered what would they be wanting that picture for?? Well, to my relief, at the end of it all, the group of Qatari women simply clapped and went on their way. Maybe they CAN appreciate the freedom women from cultures other than their own have, after all. I remember taking to my friend Gina about the whole thing, and we both had thought, "What an interesting post for my blog this would be." I hope you all agree!!!

And as we always like to do, we're including a picture of our kids with yet another one of Gabrielle's friends. Her name is Valentina and she and her family are from Colombia. Luckily, the children are still to young to have realized what all the ruckus was about. They were just more than happy with the buffet of different foods and multiple options of desserts that were available to them. What kid wouldn't be?